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CANTU CAN - PRO BAGS SECOND WSOP BRACELET (Update)
2009-07-03

Tough heads up with Watkinson

Las Vegas-based poker pro Brandon Cantu is the latest winner of a WSOP bracelet - his second - following some great poker in Event #48 - the $1 500 buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha Hi/Lo competition at the World Series of Poker.

The 29-year-old pro player had to survive another massive entry field of 762 players to reach his goal as entrants flocked to the event, illustrating once more the pull of the $1 500 buy-in level. The field generated a prize pool of $1 040 130 and attracted big names such as Lee Watkinson, Allen Cunningham, Roland De Wolfe, Perry Friedman, Jacqmin Mathieu, Padraig Parkinson, Kathy Liebert and Phil Hellmuth.

Three days later, the field was down to a final table that was destined to take eight hours to complete and was comprised of:

Seat 1: Lee Watkinson (412 000)
Seat 2: Steve Jelinek (260 000)
Seat 3: William McMahan (168 000)
Seat 4: Brandon Cantu (1 025 000)
Seat 5: Ted Weinstock (250 000)
Seat 6: Aaron Sias (353 000)
Seat 7: Mathieu Jacqmin (552 000)
Seat 8: Ronnie Hofman (76 000)
Seat 9: Tommy Vedes (334 000)

Although he started final table play with an intimidating chip lead, Cantu did not have it all his own way, seeing the lead slip away to both Lee Watkinson and French player Jacqmin Mathieu by the time the action had reached four-handed stage. Ever the pro, he kept his cool and fought back in a talented and disciplined display of poker to reach a heads up against Watkinson, albeit with a 5 to 2 disadvantage against his formidable opponent.

Encouraged from the rail by his grandfather, Cantu reduced the deficit and eventually managed to retrieve the chip lead in a thrilling heads up that ended when Wilkinson fell to Cantu's trip fours.

Cantu took home his second bracelet (his first was in event 2 of the 2006 WSOP) and $228 867, bringing his career earnings to over $3 million dollars since 2006 in more than 30 major tournament events. The win marks another good bank account boosting achievement for Cantu this year - he came second last week in WSOP Event 39, winning $403 951.

Watkinson took the runner-up's check of $141 873.

TOUGH VICTORY FOR GRAHAM IN WSOP 40 (Update)
2009-06-24

New Orleans pro denies Russian a third bracelet

Event 40 - the $10 000 buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha World Championship at the World Series of Poker saw an American and a Russian across the table from each other in a thriller of a heads up atter they had survived an entry field of 295 players and a final table with plenty of talented pros looking for the biggest share of the $2 773 000 prize pool.

By day 3 the field was down to 25, many of them acknowledged to be among the finest PLO players in the game today, but only nine could make the final table.

Final tablers were New Orleans Internet and live tourney pro Matt Graham in the chip lead on 1.4 million, followed by Ferit Gabriellson (1.2 million), Josh Arieh (1.050 million), Richard Austin (1.030 million), Robin Keston (1 million), Stefan Mattsson and Vitaly Lunkin on 850 000 apiece, Van Marcus (500 000) and Barry Greenstein (780 000).

By 2.30am the heads up stage had been reached, pitting Matt Graham (25), a New Orleans native now resident in Houston, Texas against the respected Moscow pro Vitaly Lunkin (37). The duo were almost evenly matched in chip stacks, but Graham ran into trouble ninety minutes in and was almost crippled, executing a remarkable comeback through a series of double-ups that eroded Lunkin's at one point massive 13 to 1 chip lead.

By 4.30am it was all over - two hours of exciting heads up action had culminated in Graham prevailing to take home the $679 379 main prize and the bracelet - his second from WSOP and his biggest prize in 16 career cashes to date. The win brings Graham's career earnings since he started playing poker online three years ago to $1 183 775.

Lunkin's runner-up prize was $419 832 - his second big-prize win this year after earlier taking down Event 2 - the 40th Anniversary $40 000 buy-in No-Limit Holdem contest, where he picked up $1 891 012 and his second WSOP bracelet.

FOLEY TAKES WSOP EVENT 39
2009-06-24

Three final survivors were all from the United States

Ray Foley (37) of Northville, Michigan, is the victor in Event #39 - the $1 500 buy-in No Limit Hold'em competition at the 2009 World Series of Poker. The event drew an entry field of 2 715 and delivered a prize pool of $3 705 975, with 26 players surviving through to the final day, where it took five hours to reach the following final table:

Seat 1: Chairud Vangchailued - 875 000
Seat 2: Tyler Spalding - 1 485 000
Seat 3: Patrick O'Connor - 580 000
Seat 4: Brandon Cantu - 880 000
Seat 5: Alex Jacob - 2 200 000
Seat 6: Ray Foley - 2 860 000 - chip leader and eventual winner
Seat 7: Richard Lutes - 1 555 000
Seat 8: Wei Mu - 1 370 000
Seat 9: Jonathan Markham - 400 000

Foley, who has played in four major live tournaments including this one to accrue career winnings of $733 031, managed to maintain his lead through much of the tournamet and into the final table action.

The Foley vs. Brandon Cantu heads up was decided when Wei Mu was eliminated in third place for a $269 609 payday. By that time Cantu had opened up a chip lead of around 1.8 million on his opponent, and half-an-hour into the game it looked as if Cantu was headed for his second WSOP bracelet.

It was not to be however, with Foley enjoying a marvellous run of cards to put the final shine on his talented play, sending Cantu to the cashier with a second placing reward of $403 951, and collecting the main prize of $657 969 and his first WSOP bracelet.